This parable isn’t so much about pride as it is trust.The Pharisee has lived a good life. In fact, the Pharisees saved Judaism. The Sadducees centered worship with sacrifices in the temple, and the Pharisees, said, no, the home could and should be the center of worship. After the Temple was destroyed in the year 70, if it weren’t for the Pharisees, Judaism might not have survived. Pharisees were good people, and this one probably lived an exemplary life, but even though he thinks it centers around God, it doesn’t sound as if he has any room for God, any need for God. It is all about himself.On the other hand, the tax collector is a mess. He works for Rome, so he is one of the oppressors. He is a few steps below the people he works for, but he is still above everyone else. The landowners would demand so much in taxes, but the tax collector was allowed to charge whatever he wanted, and to keep the change. It wasn’t change, either, he made a nice living from this, richer than everyone else, and on top of that, the poor person paying the taxes knew that he was paying to support the system that kicked him and kept him down. You had to pay for your oppression.So, the tax collector was not a popular man. And this one was even Jewish, one of their own, who was working for the bad guys. So when he prayed, unlike the good man who was a Pharisee, This guy knew he was a mess. He didn’t have any room for pride in himself and his accomplishments, because he knew he didn’t deserve any. All he had was room, maybe, for God. How would such a man ever get to a place where he wanted to pray? Why would a guy who spent his life ripping people off, and taking advantage of them, decide to go to a place of prayer? Maybe he had had a change of heart.So, He has nothing but hope, and he throws himself on God, because he has absolutely nothing to commend himself for. And Jesus says, “This is the one to watch. He’s the one to pay attention to, the guy whose life is a wreck, and he knows it.”When I was picturing this tax collector, I imagined him throwing himself on God, and hoping for the best. And then I realized that if you throw yourself at someone, you aren’t hoping for the best. You know you’re going to get the best, or you wouldn’t throw yourself at them to begin with.Imagine a little child. When I get home every night, my granddaughter always yells, ‘Grandma’s home!’ and she runs and launches herself at me from wherever she is. If any of you have had the experience of a child Throwing themselves at you, all excited to see you, and running into your arms, you know they are thrilled to see you. And they know you are going to be thrilled to see them. There’s no ‘hoping’ about it. It’s barely even trust. They know beyond certainty that you are absolutely delighted, and they are absolutely delighted, to see you. That’s how God is.I was at an ecclesiastical council this week for a young man, Tony, who was just approved to be ordained. After a person passes their ordination interview with the Committee on Ministry, the last step before being approved for ordination is an ecclesiastical council. This is a meeting at their home church and representatives from at least 7 other UCC churches have to be present. The candidate makes a presentation, addressing certain areas of ministry, and then anyone can ask him or her any question relevant to ministry. Then he or she leaves the room, there is discussion, and everyone votes on whether or not to approve them for ordination, provided that they get a call.As part of his presentation, Tony said that his favorite scripture (around which he tries to orient his life) is Psalm 40: 4,5 which says, “Trust in the Lord.” He explained that he had gotten a few college degrees, tried a few careers, and didn’t know which way to turn. He asked God, “When are you going to give me some direction?” and heard back, “When you’re able to let go and let me.” So, he’s tried to give up, and let God direct his life. Since then, he and his wife explored another church, ended up surprisingly finding a UCC in St. Cloud (which was there all the time, but somehow they missed it), and he went to seminary. He was offered a job at two UCC churches, and one was bigger and better and the other was little and part time, and after a lot of prayer, he really believed that God was guiding him to accept the position at the little church. And that is where he is today, and he loves it.Tony is a great example, to me of a person who let’s God be God. He is not trying to control his life as “all about Tony.” He has way more room for God.I might be more like the Pharisee in this story. I certainly try to orient my life around God, but how much do I actually rely upon God? That’s not the attitude I usually have. I tend to think that if I work hard enough, I’ll make happen what I want.

I might be more like the Pharisee in this story. I certainly try to orient my life around God, but how much do I actually rely upon God, put my trust in God? I love that saying from AA, “Let go, and let God.”I suspect that the Pharisee found the hard part letting go. As long as it was up to him, he could follow the rules, do the right things, and earn his salvation. If it was up to him, his life was all set. But could he let go? Could he throw himself upon God, and trust instead?What would that mean for us, if didn’t think we had to control everything in our lives, if we continued to do our part, but then ‘let go’ like the tax collector, and gave it to God?For one thing, we wouldn’t worry about things too much. We could keep doing what we need to do, but then accept that the rest isn’t up to us. We wouldn’t need to control our kids lives, or the lives of others we care for. We could just let them make their own decisions, and choose their own paths.If we really gave things up to God that we couldn’t control anyway, we wouldn’t be burdened with the cares of the world, because we could let go of what we couldn’t control.We could leave our jobs at work, once we knew that our work was done. We could be more secure in knowing that our job was done whenever we finished what is ours to do.We would be like Paul, when he said, “I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I kept the faith. I have done my part. I have done all that was given me to do.” We could rest easy. I see it like a huge puzzle: We would have added our piece to the puzzle, but the big picture is made by God. Amen.